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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29966034">What Remains</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/dewitts/pseuds/dewitts'>dewitts</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Mandalorian (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Din Djarin - Freeform, F/M, Slow Burn, Touch-Starved</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-16 02:34:39</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>13,240</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29966034</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/dewitts/pseuds/dewitts</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>dalilah vane is in her third life.</p><p>the first was full of sun, and the promise of life withheld by the sky. a breathable space on her home world that had no aspiration to lift itself from the farmlands of lothal.</p><p>the second was cold, and full of numbers and codes. she had been plucked from her previous ground and confined to a world of control, that had recruited those most desperate, and fragile.</p><p>this third one had yet to reveal how cruel it was. by the sound and smell, dalilah feared her previous actions would come back to haunt her.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Din Djarin/Original Female Character(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The Stranger</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>just before you start reading, im not an expert on star wars so if i get any lore wrong i apologise in advance.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀There were cracks in the walls. Little divots, and bumps. She could feel them beneath her fingers as she traced her hands along the wall behind her. That much she knew.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀There was little light within the small chamber, filtered in through thick slats pressed into the old small window. She could barely make out the architecture of the room, so had resorted to running her limbs along the expanse of this cavity. It was small, and it was stale. That much she knew.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Whatever entity had designed her collar, had taken into account the muscles of her neck. They had meticulously shaped it in a way that felt inescapable because it was. She doesn't exactly remember how long ago they had put it on her, or what satisfaction they would get out of seeing it strapped tightly to her windpipe, all she knew was prying it off with her dry fingers was not an option. Trying to do so would give the device an eighty-seven percent chance of killing her... at least that's what they had told her.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀She had experienced its paralysing shockwave through her entire body multiple times by now that she dreaded to think what it would be like to give it that chance to kill her. The electricity embedded throughout her bones every time she talked out of turn, or at some points, didn't talk enough.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Dalilah Vane knew all this, but it didn't stop her from pressing her heated forehead to the ground beneath her and asking "If I asked you so, would you tell me who I am?"</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Almost kneeling to whatever in these worlds controlled the winds, and made fire rise, and doing all she could do with her time alone — ask the questions she had been asking for most of her life.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"I don't know who I am."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The dust from the floor had gathered in the corner of her eyes, and every now and then she had to scrub at them with her wrists. It had matted into her light tawny hair, and she was sure some parts of it had clumped together into masses that could only be cut out.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀She had gone from being a display of pure prowess, as it was expected of her, to a heaping pile of bones. She once had a uniform. That much she knew.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Dalilah found that the memories of her second life were extremely discomforting when in previous times of transition she shut out all that used to make her. Whatever dust and clay had formed together to make the new Dalilah would not be tainted by the traits she had to abandon to survive.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀That Dalilah was concise, this Dalilah had yet to find out what made her.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"I don't know who I am."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p"> </p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p"> </p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p"><span class="md-plain">━━━━━━━━━━</span> </p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p"> </p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p"> </p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">"It seems your information is wrong," The client looked upon the small display of the young woman, her skin deathly pale and quivering under his eyes. "Again." His voice held an unknown accent, and a vibration of regalty that he seemingly didn't inherit but desired all the same. The only evidence of his power to her was his distinguished mannerisms, and the large circular pendant he wore on his chest.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Dalilah's eyes flickered along to the stormtroopers surrounding them, suddenly more nervous now than she was this morning. "It's right I swear," her eyes widened in sincerity, but it didn't convince the man as his position in his chair stayed still. "This time it's right."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"Well," the client's eyes rolled at her fear. "It is taking too long and I am becoming impatient with your games. This time, you will make sure yourself that the location is accurate."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p"><span class="md-plain">⠀The woman's head shook lightly, wondering exactly how sending her to retrieve the asset would do them any good — she had no viable skills in that respect, and the only emotion they had received from her was slivers of fear. </span><span class="md-pair-s"><em><span class="md-plain">It's right this time.</span></em></span> <span class="md-pair-s"><em><span class="md-plain">I swear it's right</span></em></span><span class="md-plain">.</span></p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"Do not shake your head at me girl," the man's voice bellowed threateningly. "Your false information has gotten many a bounty hunter killed, lost, or otherwise sent on a wild chase to nowhere."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Dalilah wished she could sit, she had become so used to kneeling that stretching out her limbs simply made them painful. Becoming accustomed to her fate being in others hands, the prisoner stopped the movement of her head and resided to the destiny the man was carving out for her. </span>
  <span class="md-pair-s">
    <em>
      <span class="md-plain">But it's the right information.</span>
    </em>
  </span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"Greef Karga is sending me another bounty hunter," every word came out like a sneer, clearly impatient to get his prize that was the asset. "This time, you will go too. I know you do not want to die therefore I trust that this venture will result in the asset being retrieved. This is your last chance before we take larger measures to squeeze the information from you. This is me being kind."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Dalilah gulped, the bob of her throat pushed itself up against the collar. This time, it wasn't just dust that made her eyes water.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The information in question was what she had intended to use as leverage... leverage to leave. But when she hadn't been fast enough, Dalilah had trickled in falseness in fear that they would simply kill her after they found the asset. Now it seemed they were on their last string.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The truth in her head had been treated like gold, and they had mined her brain for every last bit of it. It made her think back to how she had greatly misjudged how sensitive the information was when she had claimed it for herself.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀As they waited for the aforementioned bounty hunter, Dalilah slowly thought to herself... </span>
  <span class="md-pair-s">
    <em>
      <span class="md-plain">Do I have to be brave?</span>
    </em>
  </span>
  <span class="md-plain"> Her heart thundered inside her chest as they all silently lingered, her veins growing cold at the thoughts of being killed at the end of all this effort to keep herself alive. Whoever she was, getting out of things alive was always her top priority. There was no other endgame than to keep her heart thundering like it was now.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀No matter how scared Dalilah got, she had to live. But for now, she had no option but to do what the client told her, no matter how much her bones echoed at the thought of the end result. This much she knew.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀It seemed that the troopers had sensed the oncoming entry, as their forms shifted to face the armoured door mere seconds before it slid open with a hiss. All occupants of the room turning their heads to face their new guest.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Dalilah slid on her feet to peer over her shoulder, now taking in The Mandalorian. Her brows creased in curiosity at the sight, having only heard of such people, but never having had the pleasure of seeing one in real life. The woman's mouth parted slightly in a breath of short relief since they didn't seem like someone who did things sloppily.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀His straight spine and silent approach told her so. That and the rough, chipped armour helped ease her worry.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The Mandalorian stepped cautiously into the chasm, commanding the decibels to fall as if he held them tightly in his fist. The Stormtroopers stared onwards in their scarred, battle-worn armour — the four being a small visual piece of evidence left by the now fallen Empire.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀To Dalilah, the empire never really fell. Simply stumbled.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"Greef Karga said you were coming," The client waved a finger at the girl lightly, ushering her to move from his view so he could get a good look at the visitor. She did so quietly, like a mouse scurrying to safety.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The Mandalorian approached further, his analysation of the room around him lost behind the menacing T-shaped visor. "What else did he say?"</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀As he placed himself into the centre of the room, Dalilah had gotten a better look at him. Now distinguishing his breastplate to be that of a deep, earthy maroon colour. It was accented by his dark cloak and the silvered threads of metal that offset the otherwise muted figure. He was a welcome new sight, and she couldn't help but bore her green eyes into his shape.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"He said you were the best in the parsec." The old man's expression didn't change, even as there was a beat of intensity followed by the side entrance opening with another faint hiss. Dalilah's breath drops into her stomach as the Mandalorian reacts quickly, pulling both a blaster and pulse rifle upwards to fend off opposers on both sides. The troopers reacting in kind.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀She cowers just as Dr Pershing does, but he verbalises his fear in short yelps, apologising for the sudden intrusion. The doctor's hands come up to cover his face as he shivers, everyone in the room now witnessing just how right Greef Karga had been about The Mandalorian. Dalilah manoeuvres to now stand behind the desk, and her knees bend lightly almost as if she's getting ready to duck.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"I didn't mean to alarm," Pershing holds up his hands in surrender, fresh tracking fob in one hand and a trembling fear in the other.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"This is Doctor Pershing," the client rises from his seat, gesturing to the spectacled man, seemingly unfazed by the situation himself. "Please excuse his lack of decorum." Now approaching the Mandalorian, the client took a glance at the girl in her shrunken status, her skin still teeming with tension.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The hand he had raised caught the Mandalorian's eye, causing the thickness in the air to dissipate slightly, but not enough for him to lower his blaster. He had already surveyed the room, and he had already calculated exactly how to get out of this situation, despite the client's yearn for respite. "His enthusiasm outweighs his discretion."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Dalilah tried to recall a time where Dr Pershing wasn't a bumbling mess but came up short as she figured that the Client had the same effect on him as he did on her.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The client continued. "Please lower your blaster." His words came out through tight lips, whilst Dalilah simply viewed as the Mandalorian tilted his head back and forth. The fact that she could not see his expression, or exactly where his eyes went made her uncomfortable. It made him unpredictable, but from what she could predict of him, she felt as if ducking her head behind the desk would soon be her next move. She started to chew on the inside of her cheek, a habit that had lasted since her childhood.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"Have them lower theirs first."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The stormtrooper nearest to him scoffed. "We have you four to one."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"I like those odds," his modulated voice paired with the cooled tone made Dalilah gulp. But the client took half a step forward into the metaphorical fire, squaring up against the armoured visitor as if he couldn't just shoot him on the spot.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"He also said you were expensive. Very Expensive. Please sit." The tension in the room seemed to subside, as the client gestured to the troopers to lower their weapons. Every drip of a syllable from the man's mouth felt like acid on Dalilah's skin.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀She had been hearing it for too long, and witnessing his commanding gestures too often. Even if the time only seemed stretched to her, it was still far too long. And she knew she had subjected herself to drown in this new, captured life when she stole the information.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Left to stand as a simple witness to this transaction, Dalilah couldn't help but bury herself into herself.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The soldiers did as told, and the Mandalorian did too. Choosing though to set his amban rifle along his lap as he sat opposite the client, and therefore the girl to who he had yet to pay much attention. As the atmosphere had thinned, so had her presence in the room. As if the walls could grab at her limbs and swallow her whole — clench her bones in its rocky teeth and make her disappear.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀That's all the Mandalorian had gathered with a quick glance to her as she stood idly by the old man's side.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀There was a muffled clink as the client silently unfolded a piece of soft fabric from across the makeshift desk, to reveal a flat rectangular plate of metal lying at the centre of the redlining. Even the stormtroopers couldn't disguise their curiosity, as the Mandalorian felt their presence press up against himself. He of course knew the name of it at once.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"Beskar?"</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"Go ahead. It's real." The client pushed the object forwards, eyeing the Mandalorian's awe at something he had plenty of. To him, this was simply dust between his fingers, but to the armoured man, this was a sacred piece of history. "This is only a down payment."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The Mandalorian rubbed his gloved thumb over the imperfect grooves in the ingot, spotting the symbol that marked it as a form of imperial credit.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"I have a camtono of Beskar waiting for you upon delivery of the asset." Dalilah wondered if he had offered the same amount to the other bounty hunters, or if he was truly becoming desperate enough to offer up such a large amount of rare currency. Either way, it actually was, she was seeing it as a sign to herself that messing this up would cost her as much as the Beskar was worth.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀She only hoped her assumptions of the Mandalorian were correct, and he truly was as capable as he seemed.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"Alive." Added the anxious, bespectacled man to the side.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"Yes. Alive." The client didn't seem as worried about that detail as Pershing was as he leaned further into the table. "Although, I acknowledge that bounty hunting is a complicated profession. This being the case, proof of termination is also acceptable at a lower fee."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Dalilah's eyes wandered to the Mandalorian, trying to dig out any form of body language he emitted to see what his feelings were about that. She found nothing. It was more out of curiosity than actual questioning of his character, yet the blank read on him didn't ease her in any way and reminded her that one of her first thoughts of him was that he was unpredictable.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀His true self was as invisible to her as her own self was.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"That is not what we agreed upon." Pershing stands up for himself for once, looking desperately between the two men.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"I'm simply being pragmatic."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀From all the experience she had with the man at the desk, pragmatic didn't come to mind. To Dalilah, he simply seemed like a man desperately clutching to his powers that he once had. Someone who found practicality in sending her off with this Mandalorian — he hadn't brought it up yet, but she could tell it was going to be a big ask.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Looking away from that short piece of tension, the Mandalorian quests further. "Let's see the puck."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"I'm afraid due to discretion, and some unfortunate mitigating circumstances we can only offer you a tracking fob." The client gestures to Dr Pershing, and instead of handing the item over to the stranger, he pushes it into Dalilah's hands.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀She resists at first, keeping her hands firmly clasped together on her front before delicately taking it in her grasp.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The client continues. "This is where it gets tricky."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The Mandalorian cocks his head.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"We have been subject to great deception from the girl you see beside me. She knows the last reported positional data, and the chain code, but has unfortunately been illusory in our previous conversations. I believe that if she were to go with you, then we will have no more trouble in finding the quarry."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀</span>
  <span class="md-pair-s">
    <em>
      <span class="md-plain">It's right this time. It was right.</span>
    </em>
  </span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Dalilah thinks this is stupid, that there is no need to send her when she had been right. But in some way, he is also right, with the promise of no more pain, and no need to send herself to a dangerous planet as she had done with previous bounty hunters, the client will get what he wants.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Finally, the Mandalorian took a long hard look at the girl. She simply felt squashed between eyes she couldn't even perceive herself. She could only tell he was looking at her, by the simple tilt his helmet had taken. And then she couldn't help but stare back. There was a river inside her chest, and it crashed against the rocks that were her ribs — it frothed at her sides and made her stomach ache.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Between their idle states of observation, the client had placed one more device upon the table. "This is for her collar. I suggest you don't let her go far, as its only short range. Escorting her will ring its benefits, I promise you."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The girl's eyes then whipped to the device, bile rising up her throat, worrying that the client would demonstrate exactly what her collar could do. After each time it was demonstrated before, she could barely stand. It sickened her that a small piece of metal and wiring had so much power over her. So small yet evoking such a large emotion within her that she wasn't sure she would be able to hold in the dread it gave her. It gave it to her in sparks and bolts. It was a chunk of metal that looked down to her like it was her God, and she simply couldn't help but kneel in its presence — begging... crying. In her still form her very soul shivered.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Then she saw, the gloved hand inched gingerly towards it, admittedly because he worried that the slightest touch would set it off. He had seen such contraptions before, but this one upon her neck seemed a little more advanced than the others. That's mostly what he had been staring at.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀He assumed she was some sort of slave, but he was assuming wrong. She had her debts, but it was to those she once compliantly worked for.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The way the muscles in her neck clenched beneath the metal, and the way her hair seemed fried by a sun her skin had never seen. The way her eyes had been far away as if she was imagining a better place. He had seen the shiver that her soul had done, even if no muscle of her moved. He could only see her fear from far away. It was like she had tucked all of herself into the place between her skin and her bones, but couldn't help but have the terror surface through her pores.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"I work alone," it was almost like a warning coming from his lips.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"And you will be working alone. Think of her as the chain code itself."</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The Mandalorian plucked the device up, his fingers gently curling around it. A huff rang through his chest as he considered the trouble and annoyance it would be to bring another person with him, but with the promise of a bountiful reward, he tucked the device into a pocket and lifted himself from the seat, turning quickly as to try not to dwell on the tribulations he was predicting from this venture.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Away from the client, the doctor, and the troopers. But slowly awaiting the presence of the girl he had yet to learn the name of.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀"The Beskar belongs back in the hands of a Mandalorian," the client's tight voice reached out to him, as did his eyes. "It is good to restore the natural order of things after a period of such disarray. Don't you agree?"</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀The Mandalorian's steps faltered at the door, his head tilting to his shoulder in slight intrigue and awaiting the opening of the door. Agree or not, the job was his along with the beskar and in turn the girl for a short period. He hadn't the capacity at that moment to think of the larger scale of what exactly this imperial imprinted beskar meant... he had barely agreed in bringing the girl along.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Dalilah had seen him stand, walk, then falter yet she had not the intention to follow. She had become so used to being given intention and instruction, that her aching feet stayed glued to her spot. Clasping the tracking fob in her hands, and always aware of the device on her neck. The promise and hope of escape from this predicament held by the Mandalorian had not changed her. The girl still had no idea who she was, or what exactly she was feeling. It was all buried.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀It was all in the river in her chest and the vast night sky in her head that had yet to be filled with stars. In the shake in her hands, and in the clenching of her neck. All she had to do was look deeper, and maybe time away from this place would allow her to dig in that soil and examine the moving parts of her structure. The worms of her psyche and the flowers of her desires. The roots of her intelligence and the bugs of her faults.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀She could see it now, the visage of her self in the silhouette of the man faltering at the door. It was outlined in his cape and reflected in the metals he wore. Dalilah almost felt excitement fill her.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀So for once in those few seconds, she took initiative and manoeuvred herself around the desk, away from the men that had become familiar, and towards the armoured stranger. Footsteps slow and unsure, yet still moving.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p md-focus">
  <span class="md-plain">⠀Dalilah joined him at the door and looked once more to his visor as the door hissed open.</span>
</p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p md-focus"> </p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p md-focus"> </p>
<p class="md-end-block md-p md-focus">
  <span class="md-plain">━━━━━━━━━━</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. The Cages</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>⠀Dalilah followed closely behind the man, unsure of her surroundings even though she had been on this planet for quite some time. Nevarro was dark and thick with soot. Heat rose in swirls beneath them as the volcanic planet slowly cooked the girl's skin. She looked down to see the black dust gather at the edges of her boots, and she kicked up a rock in her path. It was wholly new, but not exceptionally fascinating.</p>
<p>⠀What was interesting to Dalilah was the market the man had led her through. There was all manner of people there, and all manner of things. Food stations, and fabric vendors. Deafening shouts of persuasion echoing their way, but the Mandalorian strolled through all of it, his mind very much on the task at hand. His noiseless steps were assured and confident, whereas Dalilah found hers stumbling at every possible opportunity, unable to regain any sense of ground — too distracted by the unfamiliar sounds and visions around her — the antithesis of how the Mandalorian walked.</p>
<p>⠀Her gaze desperately travelled over everything in their path, swallowing the view whole and saving the feeling of a grand space around her for a time when she might be enclosed again.</p>
<p>⠀The girl didn't know it but he had one stop to make before their departure, but he wasn't going to lead her there. They followed twists and turns through the small town, eventually ending up on a lengthy stretch towards an allotment of ships. Dalilah swallowed thickly as she looked back to the vendors. Hunger naturally rising in her stomach but no bravery to ask whether they could stop to arrange for her something to eat.</p>
<p>⠀She didn't remember the last time she ate, but looking at the back of his visor was intimidation enough. Hence she stuck to him like sand on wet skin. Hovering on the cusp of his vision.</p>
<p>⠀Every once in a while the Mandalorian would take a glance back at her, feeling like if he didn't look at her enough she would melt into the horizon and disappear. She was extremely translucent in her presence, and the only solution to keep her grounded was to constantly make sure she was there, right beside him. He never had to look far, as he noted her almost reaching out to him as she knew of her weightlessness herself.</p>
<p>⠀The worry in her eyes had been replaced by unspeakable relief, and for once in a long time, Dalilah felt like she could breathe.</p>
<p>⠀They arrived at the Razor Crest, the home of the Mandalorian. Their boots sliding over the metallic ground, in sync and quietly unsure of each other. Again, showing off their notable differences in just the way they stood despite their footsteps being almost one and the same.</p>
<p>⠀The man stood to the side of the gunship, promptly letting the girl walk a little ways past him before he pointed to an obscure corner. He leaned back into the walls, patient of her as she looked at him expectedly but followed his orders. Slowly lowering herself, crossing one hand over the other — a habit picked up from the interminable stretches of time her wrists had been bound.</p>
<p>⠀To the Mandalorian, this was home. His haven. An extension of the armour and helmet that protected him. But he could see in her eyes that to her, this was just another cage — and he suffered from slight guilt at ordering her to stay here, in this confined space whilst he visited his clan, but he couldn't reveal such things to the girl.</p>
<p>⠀"Stay here," he turned away from her huddled form. "I'll be right back." And then he exited, pressing a button on his wrist to shut the door. As it lifted, Dalilah craned her neck to watch him go, eyeing the swaying of his cape and the urgency in his step. The light of the outside fell.</p>
<p>⠀He didn't leave her in darkness, but he did leave her on her own.</p>
<p>⠀Dalilah breathed in deeply, finally free of the dust that used to be all she knew. No longer feeling her way about a room with one source of light. She could see the colours and shapes of what this stranger she had been ordered to accompany called his place of respite. But despite the urge to look deeper, curiosity did not get the best of her. Instead, she leaned heavily into the metal walls, pressing her spine into the smooth surface and assessing the quiet of it all.</p>
<p>⠀There was no familiar sound of troopers marching past her door, and no imminent fear of thunder to be struck in her bones. Dalilah floated her view over the various buttons and hatches within this one compartment, the familiarity of a ship sending warmth through her veins which were once cold.</p>
<p>⠀She didn't want to float alone in this new life, and that was why she had stuck so close to the Mandalorian on the outside. But as he felt like the Crest was an extension of himself, Dalilah somehow knew that too. Cocooned in his presence even though he wasn't there.</p>
<p>⠀All of this was new to her and she didn't completely understand all her feelings towards it.</p>
<p>⠀It seemed in those slight moments, it became her respite too. It was still a cage, but at least it was a better one. That's what she could pull together into a succinct thought. That's what she knew.</p>
<p>⠀She took a finger and ran it across the bottom of her shoe, rubbing the wet soot in between her digits and attentively examining what had been so close but out of her reach. The complex imagery of a world so close yet so far yet again plaguing her mind with questions about herself.</p>
<p>⠀With a cage so welcoming, she waited patiently for the imminent return of the Mandalorian. Still running through her head those same questions... always. Sitting ever so still and pushing down the thoughts she knew to be true. That this welcome relief would soon be taken from her.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>━━━━━━━━━━</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>⠀The Mandalorian had almost completely forgotten about the girl as he promptly opened up his ship once more. Consequently used to being alone that he hadn't expected his eyes to naturally find her in the same corner he had left her. Curled into herself as he had left her. So still and silent as he had left her.</p>
<p>⠀Dalilah's astonished eyes squinted under the sudden glaring light, having become adjusted to the shadowed interior of the Razor Crest, before naturally finding the Mandalorian at the entrance herself.</p>
<p>⠀He entered, uttering a small '<em>follow me</em>' before vacating his presence to the cockpit above, taking a glance downwards to make sure she was following. And she was, so close like before.</p>
<p>⠀Dalilah was unsure as she took a seat behind him, undoubtedly discovering the cushioning stiff from apparent lack of use, staring expectantly at him once more. Constantly waiting for proper direction and order. Her ultimate bit of initiative within her had been used up when she walked away from the client, and it left her authority exhausted. The girl once again unwittingly reminded herself of the ever-present collar around her neck when her hand brushed past it as she started strapping the seatbelts to herself.</p>
<p>⠀Staring far away she gulped heavily.</p>
<p>⠀"The coordinates."</p>
<p>⠀Dalilah paused her actions, jerking her head towards the armoured man in such a sudden motion it almost frightened him.</p>
<p>⠀"Oh," the girl finally spoke to him, her voice almost cracking. "Yeah, I'll—" Dalilah leaned over towards him, reaching her still dust-covered fingers to the navicomputer, punching in the specific numbers that had almost become imprinted in her head by this point. Her deft memory coming into play as she seamlessly rattled out the digits to herself. After all, her remarkable memory had been what she had relied on when she had decided to steal the information in the first place.</p>
<p>⠀The man held his breath as her body hovered over his so closely, and then when she leant back into her seat he exhaled. The Mandalorian was true with the warning he had conveyed to the client, that he works alone. Having another person aboard his ship felt like intrusion enough, but having to keep an eye out for this one felt like it was going to become tedious for him.</p>
<p>⠀He looked back to the girl, eyeing her thin arms contained in her long-sleeved brown shirt. Her collarbones stuck out and her knees trembled slightly. This person who was supposed to accompany him was so thin, and fragile he thought the hyperspace might break her.</p>
<p>⠀Nevertheless, he took the Crest into the sky. The familiar rumble of the thrusters taking hold, virtually creating a deepening heartbeat that ran through the gunship's frame as it broke away from the spaceport, tilted slightly on-axis as it flung itself into space. The innumerable stars coming into view, reflecting off his visor and bathing them in steady light.</p>
<p>⠀Before he could relax into his seat, however, he heard small gasps come from behind him. The man whipped his head around in concern, finding Dalilah in a shocked state. Her eyes glistened, and they poured tiny pieces of her heart out onto her cheeks. The mighty river that was once in her chest seemed to have overflowed and heavy tears bombarded their way down to her chest. Her mouth pouted and agape, tiny breaths escaping as her shoulders shuddered under the sudden beauty of the brazen sky in front of them.</p>
<p>⠀"Never been?" The Mandalorian almost whispered, unsure whether to interrupt a moment where he wasn't confident on whether she was in pain or awe. His brows creased in concern and curiosity when she didn't answer immediately, his eyes trying to analyse whatever profound emotion was currently falling from her eyes.</p>
<p>⠀"No, I have." her voice cracked once more taking a long baited pause, and granting it to fall through the air as she also paused her thoughts to simply bask in the forever-night sky. "I've just never seen it." It was true. Dalilah had been on many a ship but never been important enough to see the outside. She'd obtained her fair share of trips, through the atmospheres of many planets, but she was just a worker. A mechanic and a coder, who never got to leave her confined spaces.</p>
<p>⠀It seemed nothing had changed.</p>
<p>⠀<em>It was so close to me so many times.</em></p>
<p>⠀<em>I know now that I like the stars.</em></p>
<p>⠀The young woman was slightly puzzled as to why exactly open spaces excited her so much. The distinct lack of confinement was a tangible reason, but when she tried to piece it together, that simply wasn't the answer. It was on the tip of her eternal consciousness, but Dalilah Vane had confined and limited her life into short acts that could never overlap, therefore couldn't connect that the space she was in was comforting because it reminded her of home.</p>
<p>⠀Dalilah's eyes averted from the view and towards him, lips trembling as she tried to collect her visible emotions under his gaze, suddenly aware that he had been staring. But she could never tell why — the visor putting up a wall in front of explicit social intercourse.</p>
<p>⠀The man himself turned away, leaving her to watch as they hurtled into hyperspace, on their way to collect the quarry and in the end, on their way to bring her back to her cage. That's what they both recognized would come of this. No matter how much pity and curiosity he placed on her in his mind, in the end it would all be a means to no end. For Dalilah this was a brief vacation, and then hopefully a means to remove her collar.</p>
<p>⠀She subtly reminded herself of the paramount importance of the mission and what it undoubtedly meant for her in the end. That there might still be a cage, but a minimal chance of redemption to those she didn't desire redemption from. So the girl strapped herself in, surreptitiously wiping the tears from her eyes with her sleeves, and gathering a long hard breath inwards at the forceful push into the swirling, and speeding hyperspace.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>━━━━━━━━━━</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>⠀The ship flew on for some time, and in that time not a word was willingly spoken. Mando had taken to staring into the front window, keeping an eye on the girl through her distinct reflection on the glass. He spotted her closing her eyes at one point, bringing her knees up to her chest but instead of holding them close with her arms, her hands spread out beside her. As she was yearning for openness.</p>
<p>⠀In her mind, she had managed to quieten her incessant, needy questions. Simply feeling about herself, a specific technique she had developed on Nevarro when lack of answers for herself used to make her feel sick. Dalilah managed to silence her mind because she had memorised what it was like to see the stars for the first time, comforted by the enormous amount of them and their varying amounts of brightness.</p>
<p>⠀The girl didn't know whether this meant she was peaceful or happy in those moments. She knew it was good, so she kept repeating her tears of awe in her head, wanting to feel them wet her skin again.</p>
<p>⠀That was until a proximity beacon began to pulse on the console in front of him, and he quickly halted the beeping. His senses sharpening as he jolted himself out of his almost peaceful stillness under the whirlpool view, and switched the navigation back over to manual. Arvala-7 was their destination — its rocky landscape rising to meet them as he expertly manoeuvred the Crest to touch down near the specific coordinates Dalilah had set their path on. The jagged peaks of its barren wasteland spread out before them, the sand cushioning the landing yet an elongated thump echoed out.</p>
<p>⠀Mando could sense the girl behind him craning her neck to peak past his shoulder to examine exactly where they were.</p>
<p>⠀He tilted his helmet. "Arvala-7, right?" His gloved hands deftly rode over the buttons and levers, bringing the whirring of the engine to a slow, spluttering stop.</p>
<p>⠀"Yeah," Dalilah's voice came out like a whisper as she clinched their proximity even more as she slowly stood, expecting their departure to be swift, but also wanting to take a long hard look at what kind of planet they were dealing with. Despite maintaining the planet's information in her head for so long, she had no idea what it was actually like.</p>
<p>⠀"And the chain code?"</p>
<p>⠀Dalilah looked down, seeing the Mandalorian ready and waiting with his forearm extended towards her, the buttons of his armour in full display and the tracking fob in his other hand. She hadn't noticed he had ever taken it from her, but she had to do a double-take at the device when she misjudged it for the collar's remote for half a second. "I only have the last four digits."</p>
<p>⠀"Their age?" He seized his wrist away, now aware that she wasn't going to press in the digits herself as she had done with the navicomputer.</p>
<p>⠀"They're fifty years old."</p>
<p>⠀He punched in the digits required, and with that, the tracking fob came to life, lowly beeping and blinking before them. The bounty imminent, ready and waiting for its retrieval. With that in mind, Mando swiftly squeezed past the idle girl and down towards the exit of the ship. Dalilah scrambled to meet his pace, not entirely sure if he desired her to stay in the ship or come with him. It would undoubtedly impose her peace of mind to stay by his side, unsure of this foreign planet that was so different from any she had ever been on.</p>
<p>⠀The world's Dalilah had visited were never normally so vast — they had all been inflicted by the empire, churned and infected. Each one had fallen victim to the imperial parasite that once spread so quickly amongst the galaxy. The only planet she remembered being untouched was her home, but that one was still unimmune to her employer's touch.</p>
<p>⠀The girl found herself faltering as Mando stopped steadfast in the environment, pulling up his amban rifle to look through its scope at their surroundings. Dalilah stayed a bit of way from him, looking in the opposite direction, trying to be of use in their unknown situation. They both took their time scanning, tracking a line over their respective horizons — backs to one another. Dalilah absentmindedly reached up to her neck to gently scratch at the edges of the searing burns the device had bestowed her.</p>
<p>⠀She looked back to Mando, trailing her eyes over his unaware form, trying to decipher exactly where he had placed the remote for the collar.</p>
<p>⠀Just then, a large round-backed creature bellowed towards them, and the pair let out synchronised yelps of fear as it lunged for the Mandalorian. His arm was secured between its large, blunt teeth, leaving Dalilah to scurry backwards on her feet and down towards the underside of the boarding ramp, peaking out just as Mando instinctively activated his flamethrower.</p>
<p>⠀Dalilah shivered at the sight of the creature hurling the man around, his punches of no use as it chomped heavily down on his armoured arm. She gulped, in an intricate dance with her emotions as she yearned to help but could only stare wide-eyed as the battle ensues. The girl shook her head, fearing the worst as she rang through all possible situations in her head. She didn't know how to fly a ship, nor fend for herself on this ominous locale. At the thought that the creature might win — seeing it drag Mando to the ground with ease and throw him around like an ample meal, squawking like it was having fun — Dalilah shakingly brought herself out of her hiding spot, trying as quickly as her fear would let her run for the Mandalorian. Suddenly forgetting she didn't know yet whether she was brave or not, but simply doing as her instinct told her so.</p>
<p>⠀But as her bravery rose in her heart, a sharp whistle sounded and a dart flew into the creature's thick hide. Dalilah stopped in her tracks as familiar sparks snaked around the creature, sending it into the slumber with the Mandalorian still in its mouth. Dalilah shook her head again, pushing the stormy memories out of her head before continuing her path towards him.</p>
<p>⠀The girl took his arm within her eager hands and pulled desperately against the grip of the monster's jaw. The Mandalorian struggled himself, raking her grip away from him, in turn, to try and lift the nose of the beast.</p>
<p>⠀Another one approached them with just as much eagerness as the first, and the pair raised their hands in surrender and defeat as it marched angrily, and quickly. But just as quick as its approach was, another dart flew into the second creature, earning another slump onto the earthy floor beneath them all. Landing mere inches away from Mando's legs, as he started tilting his head at the situation.</p>
<p>⠀It seemed Dalilah paid no mind, thrusting the imagery out of her head once again. Reaching around to pry his now broken armoured limb from the tight mouth. He let her have at it, a soreness building in the limb and tiredness already flowing through his body, despite the length of his day being short. Soon enough, she had wrapped her smaller hands around his wrist and heaved his arm out, retracting her grip like he was made of fire as soon as she knew he was no longer going to be thrown around like he weighed nothing. Dalilah gulped, capturing the sight of the splintered pieces of armour now barely hanging on, being unable to help herself in taking precise notes of the wiring poking out.</p>
<p>⠀"Thank you," Mando whispered, glancing back to her and earning no acknowledgement of his words towards her.</p>
<p>⠀As she stared, trying to decipher exactly how it would be fixed, she almost didn't detect the approach of yet another large, ugly creature — this one instead being operated by an Ugnaught in flier's goggles and a helmet, who seemed unsurprised at the sight of a Mandalorian having his arm pried out of a Blurgg's mouth by a girl.</p>
<p>⠀"Thank you," Mando repeated, panting, this time to the Ugnaught, eyeing the small gun that must have been the source of the dart.</p>
<p>⠀"You are bounty hunter," the recent arrival placed a hand on his hips as he looked over to the two. His voice was gruff and aged, and Dalilah only now looked up to him, trying to regain her breath and trying to find footing in her mind even though physically she carefully shuffled on her knees to place herself behind the Mandalorian.</p>
<p>⠀Mando looked down to his forearm, nodding. "Yes." He extended his fingers through the wiring that had almost been shredded, hyperaware that the girl had once again cocooned into herself at his back.</p>
<p>⠀"I will help you." The Ugnaught matter-of-factly nodded himself, gazing down to them with the eyes of one who was habitually on his own. "I have spoken." He finished, delivering a gentle kick to the Blurgg he was riding, intending to lead them to where they needed to be.</p>
<p>⠀Mando had paused his observation of his broken device, surprised at the statements but unable to argue a more experienced guide would be profitable. Thinking back on the guide he had been provided with by the client, he rose from the ground and turned to her, still not knowing her name, and silently extending his uninjured hand to her.</p>
<p>⠀She took it, rising as well as they both watched the Ugnaught leave with expectation for them to follow.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. The Ocean</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>⠀Kuiil had led the pair to his personal encampment, a small moisture farm in the middle of seemingly nowhere, decorated with a large tent-like home and wired fences that acted as paddocks — quiet and isolated. Dalilah felt like she was being led to a planet in itself, as they came upon signs of years living off the land in his solitude. But the girl could identify no unutterable loneliness within him as they silently walked, instead read in him that the personal choice for isolation was one which sought peace, and was not a consequence of mere circumstance. She instantly admired him for that.</p><p>⠀He was someone who had sought what she was unknowingly seeking and had succeeded.</p><p>⠀As they crested a small hillside, the man atop the slowly lumbering creature adequately informed the Mandalorian and the girl that the beasts they had encountered were called Blurrgs — horrible and bulbous, foul-smelling things that the Ugnaught had tamed through tireless patience to be one of his mounts. From the other side of Mando, Dalilah eyed the Blurrgs posture and expression if it even had any. Even with the domesticated nature of the one this kind stranger was riding, she stuck close to Mando, still in fear of it. Still picturing the brutal ferocity of the ones that attacked them, and running through her mind the imagery of it being her head in its mouth rather than the Mandalorian's arm.</p><p>⠀After some time, they had settled within that spacious home they had spotted, ushered inwards to sit on small, wooden stools that were clearly only made for the Ugnaught. A narrow metal table in between Mando and Dalilah's legs as they scarcely avoided eye-contact as they waited for their host to speak on the situation. The host was busying himself amongst his yet again small kitchenette, pacing back and forth as he prepared something hot, and hopefully fulfilling. He carefully poured the hot liquids into a bowl and cup, teetering himself over to the small table between the man and woman.</p><p>⠀"Here," he finally spoke. "You look starved." He glanced up towards Dalilah, who had found herself leaning forward onto her knees, then perking up at his gesture. Her breath caught in her parched throat at the contact of genuine kindness but squandered no time in shakenly reaching out to the utensil he had provided and the bowl which seared her fingertips due to its heat, but it was nothing if it meant she could finally eat. The frothy substance swilled enticingly at her, and Dalilah discerned the oncoming soothing nature of a simple bowl of soup.</p><p>⠀"Thank you," Mando beat her to it, nodding politely before using his gloved finger to push the cup of dark tea just a few more inches her way.</p><p>⠀Dalilah nodded her head quickly, tenderly lifting the bowl into her lap and blowing gently on the liquid before repeating his words. "Thank you." Her voice always below a cautious whisper, as if she was daunted to disturb the dust and inflate her lungs too much — as if the organs would burst from inactivity.</p><p>⠀Kuiil motioned a hand at them, promptly communicating that it was no problem. "What are your names?" He looked between the two of them, taking slow steps back to his kitchenette.</p><p>⠀Dalilah carefully curled her lips over the spoon in her hand, the heat of the soup numbing them and sending pricks of acute pain into her mouth as she eagerly consumed the meal without blinking at the discomfort. Her throat gratefully devoured it all slowly, the pleasurable sensation of her stomach filling making the corners of Dalilah's mouth twitch upwards. When the question hit her, she subtly shifted her eyes to the Mandalorian, curious herself as to what she should be calling him.</p><p>⠀Even though they had fallen into this peculiar atmosphere where they simply accepted each other's presence, for the time being, Dalilah couldn't help there to be a feeling of piqued curiosity about The Mandalorian. He was definitely unique, and to her, it was primarily because she could never recount what he was thinking. Where others were normally glaringly obvious, the clear barrier between his truth and the rest of the world was that of his visor. The visor didn't shut her out; it simply made her search for him instead.</p><p>⠀"Just Mando is fine," the armoured one's shoulders lifted, his words coming out in a sigh.</p><p>⠀Furthermore, it was time for the two men to look expectantly at the girl, whose own eyes darted around the room. "Dalilah," her eyebrows twitched and her mild voice unintentionally shook, she took a long hard look at Mando, having at long last had a proper introduction with him. She could now see the shiny new pauldron adorning his shoulder, and she peered at it, feeling the steam of the soup rise up her neck and inquisition flow through her bones. Dalilah's eyes blinking heavily as her day was slowing down.</p><p>⠀"Many have passed through," The Ugnaught briefed them. "They seek the same one as you."</p><p>⠀*I was right*, was her first thought. *I was right and they didn't believe me.* The people who had passed through here and died, were sent by her information *which was right.* And others that were presumably soon to follow could only follow if they had been the ones that hadn't been lied to.</p><p>⠀It had been quite a time since she'd voluntarily stopped lying about the information to the client, and many a bounty hunter had passed through the safe house since then. All the people she felt somewhat responsible for. All the ones who had died from her lying, and those who had died from her truth. It was like they were ants crawling across her skin, digging into her scalp and rummaging around. It made her halt her movements, and to the untrained eye she would naturally appear to be thinking, but in her mind, she was trying desperately to push down that river once again.</p><p>⠀In her mind, she was aboard a ship enveloped amongst mile-high waves. Her screams muffled by the salty water, and her body aching to be drowned. To allow her to see the cadavers she had left in her wake not just since she was transferred to the client, but those who had fallen to the water from her ignorant skill.</p><p>⠀Her screams echoed... *I know what I've done. They gave me no choice. I was trying to find them. I have to live.*</p><p>⠀"Did you help them?" Mando had been watching to make sure the girl was filling her stomach. He didn't enjoy the thought of her passing out, and him having to carry her lifeless body across the desert. He had spotted her pause, pondering exactly why she was doing so. Then he tore his eyes to the other man as the actual task at hand flew torrentially through his thoughts.</p><p>⠀"Yes," the squat man didn't look back at the other as he poured out more tea to offer to the Mandalorian himself, sensing that their meeting with each other would become elongated, and would require some libations in the process — maybe even calm the guest's nerves at he continued his sentence. "They died."</p><p>⠀Mando and Dalilah's eyes widened with legitimate worry in unison, and they both took half a glance at each other — not expected their awareness to meet in the middle — then staring up to the Ugnaught, who didn't seem to convey the same amount of paranoia about the situation he had described.</p><p>⠀There was a beat of silence as the pair considered the situation, with Mando running through the logistics of how exactly the Ugnaught would have aided those who died and whether that service undoubtedly benefited him, and with Dalilah finally off of that water, and that boat and waiting patiently to see how the man sitting beside her would deal with the situation. When she wasn't drowning, she was methodically searching... constantly searching.</p><p>⠀Then Mando finally spoke. "Well, then I don't know if I want your help."</p><p>⠀"You do," Kuiil said categorically, turning away from what he was doing to approach the pair once more. "I can show you to the encampment."</p><p>⠀"What's your cut?"</p><p>⠀"Half."</p><p>⠀"Half the bounty to guide? Seems steep."</p><p>⠀"No," the settler took a seat opposite the Mandalorian. With the bottle of fragrant tea in one hand, he gestures with the other to the outside where his paddocks accommodated what he was after. "Half of the Blurgg you helped capture."</p><p>⠀"The Blurgg?" Mando leaned back into his seat. "You can keep them both."</p><p>⠀"No, you will need one. To ride. The way is impossible to pass without a Blurgg mount."</p><p>⠀"I don't know how to ride Blurgg." As Mando swayed his head, so did Dalilah, confirming she had also never come across such creatures and therefore didn't know how to ride them. It wasn't surprising, she possessed an entire world's worth of remarkable intelligence tucked away in her head but hardly any worldly experience.</p><p>⠀Yet Kuiil's tart final words always stopped their arguing steadfast, and gently forced them to look upon their situation without anxiety and simply let it happen.</p><p>⠀"I have spoken."</p><p> </p><p><br/>━━━━━━━━━━</p><p> </p><p><br/>⠀Dalilah sat cross-legged amongst the uneven ground next to Kuiil, watching attentively and wincing as the Mandalorian tried once more to mount the Blurgg with further intensity and impatience. Their eyes drifted back and forth as the creature spun him off its back, growling lowly into the dirt as Mando approached time and time again. With the girl and the Ugnaught as his private audience, the armoured man's hair stood on end under the squish of his helmet, as he sensed their peering gazes judging his steadfast approach. And with each throw, his skin got tighter with evident frustration, and their expressions seemed to fall in pity at his now bruised body. The Blurgg contained no such pity as he was flung once more.</p><p>⠀Even though the Mandalorian armour cushioned the blows, from where the two watchers waited, Mando's continual struggles looked brutal. And they were for a time before the blunt twirls to the floor numbed into slight embarrassment — even more so as the Ugnaught encouraged him onwards.</p><p>⠀"Perhaps, if you removed your helmet."</p><p>⠀Mando scoffed from the ground, looking on as the Blurgg swayed its thick tail in his direction. "Perhaps he remembers I tried to roast him." He distinguishes the two of them now fully, necks craning for a more proper view as they perceived him fail and fail again. Dalilah's face held that of wonder, and exemplary patience — something he felt he needed more of.</p><p>⠀"This is a female," Kuiil informed him. "The males are all eaten during mating."</p><p>⠀Dalilah and Mando lifted a brow at that statement, suddenly more afraid of the female Blurgg.</p><p>⠀As the Mandalorian got up and tried once more to mount the creature, the man standing beside Dalilah turned with his arms crossed. "You are a slave." He lifted a finger to level at her collar. "I presume this is part of your work toward freedom."</p><p>⠀With the sudden attention on her, Dalilah felt her chest constrict and her fingers curled into fists in her lap. "I—I'm not a slave," she carefully corrected, squinting past the intense sun towards the Ugnaught.</p><p>⠀Kuiil looked at her curiously before their moment was interrupted by the stomping Mandalorian stalking their way. His anger seeping into their small atmosphere, and his voice booming with frustration. "I don't have time for this," Mando's arms swung beside him quickly. "Do you have a land speeder or Speeder bike that I could hire?"</p><p>⠀"You are a Mandalorian!" The words flew fast as Kuiil combatted against his clear restlessness, shaking his head. "Your ancestors rode the great Mythosaur. Surely you can ride this young foal."</p><p>⠀The Mandalorian staggered back towards the Blurgg, staring across the paddock as she anticipated their next match, glaring back at him with baleful yellow eyes. With what the sitting girl could gather, its expression had not changed, and its growls still hummed the song of revenge. Dalilah gulped with the appearance of an alternative approach that Mando was taking, as he tiptoed his way to the young creature, and she almost felt as if she should look away. Would he give up and walk away, or try to subdue it by force?</p><p>⠀He did neither, as he kept up with the stealth of his footfalls. Mando took a tentative step forwards, arms at his sides, hands slightly outstretched in a gesture of peace. Then another step. "Easy. Easy," he said. The Blurgg growls once more, it snuffed and grunted at him, yearning for a fight. "Now, all right. Settle down."</p><p>⠀Dalilah's eyes softened at the scene, noting now the gentleness of the Mandalorian.</p><p>⠀By the time Mando had reached it, she had allowed him to place his hand atop her head. And her eyes fluttered closed at the comforting contact, and its steps slowed. "All right," Mando whispered, as he hoisted himself up onto her back. She growled but didn't try to throw him this time. With no more lingering threat of bruises, he began to achieve his balance.</p><p> </p><p><br/>━━━━━━━━━━</p><p> </p><p><br/>⠀As the day slowly tipped its way into a close, the Ugnaught, the Mandalorian, and the girl rode single file into higher country, where the terrain became more merciless as it was interspersed with steep peaks, and crevasses so deep every time the girl looked down them she felt like being sick. Cracks thickened and broken under the torrid heat of the relentless sun, in a way that could never heal. The Blurggs travelled seamlessly over the rough topography, as Mando and Kuiil held tightly onto their reigns, Dalilah's fingers hooked into the saddle behind the bounty hunter.</p><p>⠀Cresting the dusted highland, Kuiil pulled back on his reigns to heel the beast and pointed down. "That is where you'll find your quarry."</p><p>⠀Dalilah could finally look upon the scene of the location she'd purposefully stuck in her head. What it all had been leading up to. She canted her head down to look past the swaying cape of the Mandalorian, seeing only the tops of stone buildings. Making out the rounded compound, and its aged walls. Whatever was there, whoever it was they were meant to capture or execute, this was the forging of her path to freedom.</p><p>⠀Mando dove his hands into the side pouch of his harness, holding out a small bag towards the Ugnaught. "Please," he told him. "You deserve this." Kuiil waved his hand at the offering, refusing to accept.</p><p>⠀"Since these ones arrived, this territory has been an endless stream of mercenaries seeking reward and bringing destruction." Dalilah looked down at his words, sensing the prickling presence of those cadavers again. "I grow weary of it."</p><p>⠀"Then why did you guide me?"</p><p>⠀"They do not belong here," Kuiil swayed his head as he looked onwards. "Those that live here come to seek peace. There will be no peace until they are gone."</p><p>⠀Mando looked to the shorter man, still not fully understanding. "Then why do you help?"</p><p>⠀"I have never met a Mandalorian. I've only read the stories," he tilted his head in thought. "If they are true, you will make quick work of it." The amount of fable that Kuiil spoke of was about the comparable amount Dalilah had heard of. That they were deadly warriors who held up to a code. "Then there will again be peace."</p><p>⠀Transferring her eyes to the Mandalorian in question to gauge his thoughts she could never read, Mando took a glance back as he detected her presence weigh heavier in his peripheral.</p><p>⠀Kuiil tugged on the reigns, lifting his hand in finality. "I have spoken."</p><p>⠀With that, Mando and Dalilah were left alone again. Basking in the polluted heat and silence, the sun reflected sharply off the metal of Mando's helmet and danced on what parts of Dalilah's skin were exposed. He'd noticed she was calmer — probably a result of her being fed — but he couldn't shake her from her need to clutch to him constantly. To a greater extent as they had ridden along the landscape, there was enough room for the two of them, but Dalilah had chosen to press herself into his back. She had been eternally on edge like she could fall from a tremendous height at any moment despite her body being gravitated and steady. Despite what he could scrutinize from her — that she was pleasantly patient with what they were doing — her thoughts were as hot as the wind and as sticky as the sweat that started to ride along her skin.</p><p>⠀They both slipped off the mount, crouching down to approach the horizon of their destination. Mando took the lead, letting his body fall to the ground in flat discretion and Dalilah simply mirrored his actions. Crawling up beside his larger body, she peered down towards the encampment, while Mando pulled out a long, cylindrical device to help him see better.</p><p>⠀There was a moment where they just breathed in the same space, not saying a word as they both tried assessing the situation, Dalilah's lack of strategic know-how making her thoughts and eyes travel over the landscape, deciphering the U-shaped arrangement of flat-roofed buildings, and the scaly-skinned imposing Nicto. Whereas Mando was counting and measuring. The Nicto-Mercenaries darting back and forth between buildings and lingering around like microscopic animals in a cage they had created for themselves. Their faces and heads studded with horns, and their bored looks making them dangerous in the same way those stormtroopers in the safehouse were — heavily armed and looking for trouble. The girl beside him propping her chin on her arms crossed out in front of her, feeling comforted by their idle stasis.</p><p>⠀Their small slither of peace was broken when a mechanized figure approached the plaza, instantly causing the situation to worsen. Mando's face fell into dismay and annoyance at the sight. "Oh no." His scope followed the figure as it stomped to the attention of the guards. "Bounty droid."</p><p>⠀"An IG series."</p><p>⠀Mando let the scope fall from his eye as the girl's voice fell across to him. His visor tilting down to her form as he watched her lift her neck for a more favourable view.</p><p>⠀"Thank the maker it's an eleven and not an eighty-eight," her eyes seemed to spark from such a sight as a droid. Her brain suddenly filled with all of her past experience, and knowledge she felt was useful to the Mandalorian's situation. "Enforcing and Security. Factory standards fit them with concussion grenade launchers, flamethrowers and acid-proof servo wires." Dalilah's voice held that same awe he had seen in her when she saw the stars, although he didn't understand why.</p><p>⠀"You know a lot about droids." Mando tucked his scope back into his belt, leaning on his side to fully see her expression and pull the amban rifle from his back.</p><p>⠀Dalilah finally turned to him after gazing at the IG unit some more, a flicker of a smile painting her mouth. "'A lot' is a bit of understatement." Her voice still quiet, and unassuming, but this time it held an air of amusement as he stared blankly at her small display of intelligence. In those seconds they seemed to see each other, despite their own personal blockades. But it was just those few seconds.</p><p>⠀"Subparagraph sixteen of the Bondsman Guild protocol waiver compels you to immediately produce said asset." Mando and Dalilah were both pulled from their moment as the whirring voice of IG-11 rattled out words that were nonsense to the mercenaries. The pair watched closely as the situation immediately turned sour when the Nicto retaliated, lifting their blasters just as quick as the droid was able to take them down.</p><p>⠀A battle ensued as shots were discharged quickly, the lean body of the droid swirling left and right and displaying its clear prowess when it came to killing those that opposed it. It took only a few seconds for those in sight to be taken care of, IG-11 spinning deftly to take the last visible one out as a few others retreated to the buildings. The hefty, metallic doors sliding shut with deep creaks, leaving the droid alone in the middle of the compound.</p><p>⠀A deep sigh flew out of Mando's mouth, before he lifted himself from the ground, leaning his hands on his knees to still keep a low profile, squatting beside Dalilah who had since ducked from clear view and onto her back. "You know how to shoot?" the Mandalorian's voice, suffering the pang of annoyance at the presence of a droid, came out in a huff. The Amban rifle removed and now held tightly in his fist towards her.</p><p>⠀"No," her hair fanned out across the dust as her head shook slowly, and it mixed with the earth. Dalilah's eyes never met the rifle, almost afraid of even looking at what belonged to the man above her.</p><p>⠀"Then... " he was at a loss of words, all the strategy in his head coming to a pause as he had to face, and decide what he was going to do with the girl. Whereas before he was blessed by her silent nature and general unassuming presence, this time he had to think about where she stood on the playing field. "Just—" he pushed the rifle into her arms. "Hold it." And then his steps fled her silently, leaving her with a large weapon wrapped in her limbs as she laid bare against the sun.</p><p>⠀Dalilah felt like she didn't dare look over the lip of the hill once more, slowly breathing in the cloudless sky and feeling about the sand with her fingers by her side. Gently clenching the mounds and letting them fall. But the worry in her heart couldn't help but ultimately push herself to search frantically for the Mandalorian within the scene. And by the time she had worked up the courage to look, Mando was on the floor begging against the droids murderous nature for them to work together. She could only watch instead of hearing their heated negotiations as the moment quietened around them, with no immediate sign of retaliation from the Nicto-Mercenaries, but an imminent expectation for them.</p><p>⠀Dalilah sighed tiredly from her spot on the hill, her eyes glued to her companion. Then they reflected with red light as the shrill, concussive blasts started flying through the air once more. Thin sounds of explosion echoed across the dip in the earth, and they carried their way into Dalilah's ribs, making her sigh cut short into gasps of fear. There was nothing the girl could do, except clutch desperately to the weapon leant to her and hope her curious eyes wouldn't be caught by those who seemingly protecting this space. And there was time to think on her actions of truth, and about all the people that had fallen victim to this deadly space because of one bounty placed by an imperial wannabe.</p><p>⠀She tried not to fall in that ocean again, keeping her attention on Mando as he skittered across the landscape with ease and agility that the Mandalorian stories had only hinted at. She squeezed her eyes shut ever so often as the swirling heat in the air messed with her vision, and she yearned to have borrowed Mando's scope instead of a gun she couldn't shoot. But then it wasn't just the heat, but the red blast of a weapon flew across her eyes with frightening speed. The shot colliding with the earth at her side and sending dust flying over her head. She managed to duck and shield her eyes from the familiar feeling of the particles floating their way down, but not before she let out a petrified yelp into the canyon.</p><p>⠀Another flew by her side, and her instinct made her leap up and follow the path the Mandalorian had taken. Still clutching the Amban rifle to her front, and her feet slipping perilously at the soft edge before fully collapsing underneath her frantic jog. Her body jerked as it fell, tumbling over and over down the hill in fast twirls. Dalilah's body hit the bottom in a resounding thump but didn't falter in her escape from death as she ran aimlessly towards the first pillar she saw.</p><p>⠀Heavy gasps flew out of Dalilah's mouth as she backed herself up into the rocky structure, shadowed by the overpass. Looking around frantically, trying to return her eyes to the silvered, Beskar helmet, it wasn't long before his eyes had found her too.</p><p>⠀Mando spotted the frantic steps teetering his way, and the outline of a now dust-covered Dalilah cowering from blaster shots that she had somehow avoided on the brief trip she had taken to get to her current position. His heart dropped into his stomach as the red streaks steered her way.</p><p>⠀"Mando," Dalilah whispered to herself, as she found him crouched behind a toppled cargo bed, looking straight back at her as he put his arms out in confusion.</p><p>⠀"Wait there," he yelled over the commotion, peeking over the obstacles to gauge when would be a good time for her to run. There were more of them now, materialising from the shadows and onto the rooftops. They rained down shots like a storm that had never hit this planet. Mando checked the tracking fob, its beeping becoming rapid and louder. "Now!" His legs straightened, and his blaster raised, expertly aiming at each mercenary, carving out a path for Dalilah as she tightened her lips around the screams threatening to tear from her chest, and ran for the Mandalorian.</p><p>⠀Mando and IG moved in tandem towards the destination, as Dalilah tried to keep up with their fluid movements throughout the encampment, her feet shuffling along the ground as her breath failed to escape her. The sheer chaos of the environment turning her expression into intelligible fear before Mando yanked her arm around to push her into the next pillar they came across. IG-11 taking most of the brunt of the work, as his new companions took cover, his gymnastic approach swiftly making his path towards Mando and Dalilah to take cover himself.</p><p>⠀"What happened?" His words came out in more of a shout of an annoyance than concern as he looked down at her widened eyes. Dalilah's hair was tousled over her face and floated in the air as panicked pants were all she could utter. His rifle still tucked into her arms, just as he had told her to. "Up top," Mando instructed, as he spotted IG approach them, the Nicto falling to the ground in a heap of blaster heat in their shadows.</p><p>⠀They were at an impasse, the opposers uttering instructions as they readied their positions, and the three invaders tucked neatly behind thick pillars of pale stone. Dalilah pressed uncomfortably behind Mando as he squeezed their bodies together for better cover.</p><p>⠀"It appears we are trapped," the droid said, stating the obvious. "I will initiate self-destruct sequencing."</p><p>⠀"Whoa!" Dalilah squealed as the Mandalorian's body whirled against her. "You're what?"</p><p>⠀"Manufacturers protocol dictates I cannot be captured. I must self-destruct."</p><p>⠀"Do not self-destruct!" Mando ordered. "Cover me."</p><p>⠀Apparently willing to entertain this new initiative, the IG whirled around and continued firing as the fellow bounty hunter left Dalilah's side in favour of darting towards the door panel that would hopefully lead them to the asset, and safer ground.</p><p>⠀Almost feeling like his close presence was the only thing keeping her upright, Dalilah slid to the ground, knees tucking up into her chest as she clutched desperately to the amban rifle as if it were some token of luck. She placed her flat palms over her eyes, so all she could do was hear the commotion as it kept going.</p><p>⠀Every blaster bolt and every yell from the mercenaries sent jolts of terror through her body. Dalilah then, intentionally put herself into the ocean, preferring to be there rather than on the brink of getting pummelled with rapid bursts of heat. The girl's eyes screwed up beneath her hands, trying to let her soul fall away yet not accepting the defeat of death. She blocked out the yells of pain that echoed across the space and swallowed whatever panic had consumed her down into her bones.</p><p>⠀The panel was of no use, as a blaster bolt struck into the wiring and reduced it to a sizzling mess, leaving Mando to share the cover with IG. He took one quick glance at the girl, finding her curled into herself like she always seemed to be. "They've got us pinned!"</p><p>⠀"I will initiate self-destruct."</p><p>⠀"Do not self-destruct! We're shooting our way out!"</p><p>⠀The Nikto had been laughing, but for what reason they didn't know, up until Mando and IG turned their bodies to face them and spotted the heavy-artillery laser cannon currently mounted on a hover-pad and pointing their way.</p><p>⠀"Okay."</p><p>⠀They ducked back just in time as the cannon roared, spitting out a massive hail of fire.</p><p>⠀Dalilah once again, tucking her legs beneath her as her whole body quaked, blocked it all out. Whilst the IG was insisting on self-destructing, and the Mandalorian formulated a plan to take them all out in one fell swoop, Dalilah paid no mind to it as she tried desperately to shield herself from any and all oncoming danger. So much so, she didn't even notice when Mando had taken the laser-cannon for himself, and swiftly took out the entire gang of Nicto falling, and tumbling to their deaths. Her thoughts were somewhere else, whilst her body couldn't help in its natural reaction to the sounds, Dalilah was currently letting herself drown in that ocean she had pictured for herself. Not noticing still as the Mandalorian strode towards her after his triumphant win against the strangers.</p><p>⠀"Hey," his voice came out quiet, and tired. He'd pushed his hand out towards her, but she couldn't feel his presence until he had spoken. "It's over." His chest heaved from exertion, as he watched her unwittingly pull her hands from her eyes — their red-state telling him she had been on the verge of tears. It wouldn't have been the first time he had seen her cry, but this time it was different. The fear of her cries hadn't slipped onto her skin, but her entire visage was telling him she was utterly terrified of what had transpired.</p><p>⠀Dalilah's fingers trembled as she reached out to his, the barrier of the gloves between their skin always keeping them from every truly connecting, as he easily lifted her from the ground, taking the amban rifle away from her.</p><p>⠀"Well done," IG called out to the man, the woman speedily pulling her grip away from his hand she had unknowingly fastened onto for dear life. "I will disengage self-destruct initiative." The pair started their slow and exasperated walk towards the droid, as its whirring and warning beeps came to a halt as it felt it would no longer be captured.</p><p>⠀Mando extended a hand now out to the new metal accomplice, helping him to its feet. "You know, you're not so bad. For a droid."</p><p>⠀Its pinpoint, cylindrical eyes veered towards the fellow bounty hunter. "Agreed."</p><p>⠀"That blaster hit looks nasty," the carbon-scored plate of the IG unit sparked as if on cue. "You okay?"</p><p>⠀"Running a quick diagnostic." it did as stated, its lights blinking quickly. "It has missed my central wiring harness."</p><p>⠀"Is that good?"</p><p>⠀"Yes."</p><p>⠀Dalilah nodded from her place besides Mando, finally able to exhale. She crossed her arms over her chest, quickly finding her usual position stuck close to his body.</p><p>⠀"Well," Mando remarked. "Now we just need to get the door open."</p><p>⠀Mando, IG, and Dalilah all stood for a moment, before locking their eyes on the laser-cannon.</p><p>⠀As expected, the cannon made short work of the door with a couple of well-placed shots around the outer-rim of the door seal, and soon enough, the door itself was pried open and the whole thing gave way with sparks as it came down with a thundering crash.</p><p>⠀The two hunters and the girl stood in the doorway for a moment. Dalilah's eyes peeking over Mando's shoulder, spotting the various crates and packing strewn across the shafts of light that tore into the old, stale air. Everything scattered randomly, with no evidence that anyone had been living in the space.</p><p>⠀Then as if summoned by a question never asked, a Nikto shot out from behind a pillar, only to be taken out swiftly by Mando's impeccable aim and reaction time. "Anyone else?" he called out, placing his boots onto the fallen door as they entered quietly.</p><p>⠀"The tracking fob is still active. My sensors indicate that there is a life-form present."</p><p>⠀The Mandalorian pulled out his own tracking fob, letting the sounds lead the way as Dalilah looked around, spotting no apparent life form that IG had referred to. The fob beeping with more intensity as they moved forward, eventually letting out a high-pitched whine as it came into the same space as a silver, egg-shaped container hovering just beside a couple of crates, a thickly knitted blanket covering its front.</p><p>⠀Anticipation and curiosity filled the air as Mando leaned down to press one of the three buttons on the contraption.</p><p>⠀They all just stood there for a moment, the human's eyes landing tenderly on the green, large ears as the child pulled its blanket down with its tiny, three-fingered hand. Its watchful eyes blinking away sleep, staring curiously towards its visitors.</p><p>⠀"Wait," Mando turned to Dalilah. "You said fifty-years-old." She didn't falter her gaze at his words, and he watched onwards as her brows came into a crease on her forehead at the sight of the small thing. Something along the lines of... guilt crossing her eyes.</p><p>⠀"I did. And I wasn't wrong." Her voice returning to that small state.</p><p>⠀"Species age differently," IG interjected. "Perhaps it could live many centuries."</p><p>⠀Mando tore his eyes from Dalilah and back to the infant, as the mouth-opened and small coos couldn't help but make their bodies warm. Something the droid could not experience as he coldly started to point its blaster towards it. "Sadly, we'll never know."</p><p>⠀"No," Mando's words almost caught up in his throat, pushing the blaster down beside them. "We'll bring it in alive."</p><p>⠀"The commission was quite specific. The asset was to be terminated."</p><p>⠀Dalilah had in this time, been slowly inching her way towards the cradle, hit by a sudden protectiveness she had never experienced. Her heart soaring with an overwhelming ardour to hold the infant, and to protect it from the droids specific instructions. At the same time that Mando had lifted his blaster to take out IG, Dalilah had flung herself in front of the pram, shocked by her actions to save the little one's life in place of her own. The instinct to shield the asset for her further gain in getting the collar off her person, and also an instinct buried deep within her, but she couldn't differentiate the two.</p><p>⠀Her arms holding the edges with distressing force, she squeezed her eyes shut at the sound of a blaster. But when no pain came, her eyes followed the sound of a large thunk as IG's fried head flattened to the floor. A thin ribbon of smoke rising from the hole in its cranial vault. Dalilah pushed a puff of air out of her lungs, backing up into her position next to the Mandalorian once more as he holstered his weapon.</p><p>⠀The little one cooed some more, as the pair reached out to it with their fingers, the creature clasping their digits within his tiny hands.</p>
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